Alsace is France’s smallest region and is sometimes overlooked by wine drinkers in favor of larger, more familiar regions. But that means there is value to be had from these versatile and food-friendly wines. The region itself has its own identity, being neither wholly French nor German as a result of turbulent politics and being a geographical football during the Thirty Years War, the Franco-Prussian War and up until the conclusion of World War II.

There is pinot noir planted, but this is primarily a white wine region with the four noble grapes being riesling, muscat, gewurztraminer and pinot gris. The wines are also consumer friendly since Alsace is the only region in France that has the varietal listed on the label.

Considering the cuisine of Alsace, red wine drinkers who eschew white wine as not being full-bodied enough should reconsider. The wines are typically paired with the many different sausages (Choucroute) and, of course, sauerkraut.

Hugel Classic Pinot Gris 2008 — Same grape as pinot grigio that covers most of northeastern Italy, but in Alsace there is more weight, body and personality than 99 percent of what is produced in Italy to fill the jugs of Cavit and the coffers of the owners of Santa Margherita. This wine shows nutty flavors upfront with some earthy mineral components and rich midpalate but finishes dry.

Trimbach Gewurztraminer 2000 VT — VT is Vendages Tardive, which means late harvest. These wines can vary in sweetness and this one is more to the dry side with a very complex nose of green tea, orange blossom, dried orange peels and spicy aloe. It finishes long and is a very special and rare treat.

All of the producers listed above are fairly well known and make an array of different wines in different styles. Their basic bottlings offer value as do their higher end wines. Trimbach makes a riesling named Clos St. Hune (a Clos within the Grand Cru vineyard Rosacker) that is one of the world’s finest white wines and is a fraction of the price of white Burgundy of comparable quality. These are white wines for cold weather, for meats and for wine drinkers who don’t think they like pinot gris.